Robbins leading late-season Vanderbilt push

“I haven’t played in the NCAA tournament yet and that’s something that would mean a lot. It’s what we’re all working toward,” the 7-foot center from Davenport Assumption said.

Robbins has been doing his part.

He was named the Southeastern Conference player of the week last week and has continued to perform at a high level as the Commodores have built a five-game win streak.

“I give a lot of credit to my teammates for putting me in a position to do some good things,” Robbins said. “It helps that we have the best point guard in the SEC in Ezra Manjon. He does a great job finding me in good spots to make things happen.”

Robbins earned his weekly honor from the SEC after leading Vanderbilt to wins over sixth-ranked Tennessee and at Florida a little over a week ago.

He averaged 23 points, 9.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocks in the wins, finishing with 14 points and nine rebounds against the Volunteers and following that with a career-high 32-point game to go with 10 boards against the Gators.

Robbins continued to produce in a 67-65 win over Auburn on Saturday, collecting 24 points to go with 12 rebounds.

His work has helped Vanderbilt improve to 15-12 on the season, including an 8-6 record in the SEC.

With averages of 15.1 points and 6.9 rebounds, h=e leads coach Jerry Stackhouse’s team in scoring and rebounding.

Robbins also leads the Commodores with a 50.2-percent touch from the field and ranks second in the SEC with an average of 2.9 blocks per game.

At Vanderbilt, Robbins said he has continued to learn just as he has at every stop along the way.

From the gym at Assumption High School to the season he spent at the Sunrise Christian Academy in Wichita, Kan., to his previous collegiate stops at Drake and Minnesota, Robbins said he has benefited from each.

“Not a lot of people can say they’ve had the journey that I’ve had but I thankful for every step. I feel like they have all helped me become the player I am today,” Robbins said.

Stackhouse, in his fourth years leading the Vanderbilt program, and a coaching staff that includes Assumption alum Andy Fox have given Robbins a chance to continue to grow.

“They’ve taught me what it is like to be real professional. It’s a different style of game in the NBA in how you handle yourself on and off the court,” Robbins said. ”To have a chance to learn from coach Stackhouse, a coach who spent 18 years in that league, it has helped my game continue to improve.”

Improvement has been at the core of Robbins’ success throughout his college career, building off of a work ethic instilled in him by his parents as he was growing up.

“Both of my parents are hard-working people and they’ve supported me in whatever I’ve decided to do, teaching me not to accept anything less than giving it 100 percent every step of the way,” Robbins said.

He earned all-Missouri Valley Conference honors while leading Drake in scoring, rebounding and blocks during a breakthrough sophomore season.

Robbins led the Big Ten in blocks as a junior at Minnesota during the 2020-21 season and was the Golden Gophers’ second-leading scorer and top rebounder.

Last season, an injury delayed his debut at Vanderbilt until an early February game at Kentucky but he averaged 6.8 points and four rebounds in 15 late-season games for the Commodores.

“At Drake, I built my fundamentals and developed the confidence and belief in myself and at Minnesota, I found myself going up against great big men and learned what it took to compete against players like Luka Garza, Kofi Cockburn and Hunter Dickinson,” Robbins said. “That all helped me get to where I’m at today.”

Robbins, who earned his undergraduate degree in business marketing and education, will earn his Master’s in human development studies from Vanderbilt this spring.

With hopes of continuing his career on the court at the next level following this season, Robbins senses a bit of finality at the collegiate level with each game the Commodores play.

“It hit me the first game of our conference season, just thinking about it being the last time I’ll be playing against this team or the last time I’ll be playing in this gym or that gym,” Robbins said.

“It’s motivation. I want to make this season the best it can be. Nobody wants to go out on a loss and for us as a team, that means earning a spot in the NCAA tournament.”

In some respects, that mindset is already there.

“With where we are right now, with our record, the tournament has already started for us,” Robbins said. “Coach Stackhouse said that the other day, that we’re already in tourney time and we need to keep playing that way.”